Revenue Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan on Saturday said that notices have been served to seven ‘influential’ persons who have undertaken illegal construction works at encroached properties at Munnar. A deadline of 15 days has been set for them to vacate from the properties.
Speaking to media persons here on Saturday, Mr. Radhakrishnan said the State Government will engage in confrontation with the encroachers only if they fail to adhere to the deadline that has been set. He also chose not to divulge any details of those who have encroached, but said that he would reveal the names if they did not comply with the issued notice.
He, however, admitted that there were resorts that have been found to have been constructed on encroached lands. He added that the Department has identified more persons who have illegally constructed on encroached properties.
Mr. Radhakrishnan also said that the Revenue Department will soon adopt effective measures to check encroachments.
A 30-membered Land Protection Force will be deployed at Munnar by the end of the month. The team, which will comprise trained ex-servicemen, will be entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring that the properties that were reclaimed by the Government are not re-encroached.
The Department is considering the proposal of installing surveillance cameras in order to prevent encroachments. “Such cameras can be placed at a vantage point like Parvathimala and would facilitate round-the-clock monitoring from various central stations,” he said.
Mr. Radhakrishnan also said that the State Government would employ the services of digital mapping at Munnar. The digital technology would help to easily identify encroachments and prevent such illegal activities in the future.
